One item in today’s Jolt is the reaction to the nuptials of a former First Daughter:
My lone thought on Chelsea Clintons’ wedding until now was, “well, that’s nice.” But apparently some folks are deeply bothered by the nuptials, particularly the cost.
Doug Ross is up in arms, quoting his wife’s lament that, “they had to hold an over-the-top, massive celebration when the American economy is suffering.” and Don Surber echoes, “Chelsea Clinton blew $5 million on a wedding while her father raises money for Haiti. Shouldn’t charity begin at home?”
Well, the Clintons gave $10 million to charity between 2001 and 2008. Most of that is to the Clinton Foundation, and there have been some who griped that some of the donations seemed timed and targeted for political benefit, there’s little dispute that the causes are worthy.
But even if the Clintons were misers, this is their money. They only have one child; presuming Chelsea never divorces and remarries, this is it for them. Can you blame them for pulling out all the stops?
I gripe about the Kobe beef and quail egg appetizers at Obama fundraisers, but that’s because he’s still a public servant living in public housing at the moment, and ostentatious displays of luxury from an elected leader during year three of a recession rankle. But Bill Clinton’s out of office and nobody elected Chelsea to anything. Chelsea’s never claimed to be a woman of the people, or salt of the earth, or humble or anything. For most of her adult life, she’s lived her life and avoided the public spotlight. So if her parents can afford it, why shouldn’t she get the cake that costs more than some cars and pull out all the stops? You know that a large chunk of the guest list is her parents’ friends, anyway . . .
I appreciate the sweet reaction of . . . Robert Stacy McCain. Really. “Don’t let these complaints spoil your happiness, Chelsea. A girl as sweet as you deserves a shameless capitalist wedding. And in the spirit of true bipartisanship, please give my best regards to your Mom and Dad and tell them if they’re thinking about a Democratic primary challenge to Obama in 2012, I’ll be happy to start Operation Chaos II.”
I have to say, though not a huge Derb fan his 2001 piece about Chelsea kind of hits the mark for me:
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It's "their own money," in Derb's words, achieved "by stealing it, never let it be forgotten, or by bribing and lying their way into well-paid public offices..." As for little Chelsea, she accepted her $5 million with eyes wide open, in exactly the same way she signed onto The Clinton Project when her dad needed the family photo op, or when she decided the charade of studying to be a pediatrician was no longer necessary. In my book that puts her in the same league as Meadow Soprano.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseChelsea married a Wall Street investment banker. I'm sure he's not hurting for money either.
No surprise in any of this. Democrats are the party of the idle rich -- Republicans are the party of entrepreneurs who EARN their money.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseDrudge reported that some of the $$ came from George Soros. I haven't been able to find verification of that, but if that's true, then I have a big problem with the current Secretary of State (let's not forget that the Clintons are not entirely private citizens now) accepting a significant gift from a foreign national.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI suspect more jobs were created by Chelsea's wedding than were created by the nearly $1 billion spent by the federal government.
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